1st major international trade fair attracts overseas buyers, investors

KATHMANDU, April 6: 

The five-day Nepal International Trade Fair (NITF)-2012 kicked off in the capital Thursday. 

The fair has some 350 participants from more than seven countries, including Nepal, China, India, Pakistan, Bhutan and Bangladesh, showcasing products. 

While Nepali participants have largely focused on 19 items such as handicrafts, herbal products and tea that have been identified as highly-potential exportable items in the National Trade Integration Strategy (NTIS), other countries have also showcased consumable products and latest industrial technologies. 

The fair is being attended by international buyers. And through the five days, participants hope they will be able to establish long-term business ties and win orders from countries such as UK, Germany and Japan.

“The fair will be an exclusive platform for exporter-importer talks and participants will have ample opportunity to be aware of latest manufacturing and other technologies ruling the market,” said Suraj Vaidya, FNCCI President.

Vaidya said FNCCI would continue to hold Nepal International Trade Fair every year, eventually making it the largest buyer-seller gathering of the region. “This is just a beginning. Events in following years will be grander,” he said.

The event was inaugurated by President Dr Ram Baran Yadav. 

The fair has separate Nepali pavilions on handicrafts, agro-processing and other products. Likewise, countries like China, India, Pakistan and Bhutan also have their own pavilions. Unlike the other fairs, the NITF has a business-to-business approach, and organizers said they have made arrangements to hold meetings between national and international buyers and investors throughout the event.

FNCCI is the lead organizer of the fair. The fair is also supported by Trade and Export Promotion Center, Ministry of Commerce and Supplies.

FNCCI officials said Bhrikuti Mandap of Kathmandu was not spacious enough to hold the annual event.

“There is a serious dearth of space. Hence, we request the government to support us in developing a venue for holding large-scale international fairs in the country,” he stated.

Vaidya mainly requested the government to provide land, adding FNCCI would develop it into a well organized venue for the international fairs by collecting funds from different sources. 

FNCCI officials also complained over lack of support from the finance ministry, particularly the customs department, saying the rigid procedures regarding entry of goods for display in the fair compelled 20 companies from South Korea and 15 from Bangladesh to cancel their participation. 

“We request the government to cooperate with us and take steps to do away with procedural hassles at the customs offices so that no company will have to withdraw their participation,” said Vaidya.

Among others, commerce minister Lekh Raj Bhatta, industry minister Anil Kumar Jha, high-level government officials, foreign dignitaries and delegates visited the fair. FNCCI also handed over the Best Buyers of the Year Award to importers from Japan and Germany.

FNCCI to hold 46th AGM Friday

Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI) is holding its 46th annual general meeting on Friday, during which the apex business body is preparing to present its plans and priorities for investment promotion and jobs creation.

On the eve of the AGM, FNCCI said the meeting will review the performance of the federation over the last one year and also hold discussions on multiple sectors, formulating strategies for the development of priority sectors over the next one year.

During the opening ceremony scheduled to be inaugurated by Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai FNCCI President Suraj Vaidya will unveil a draft of ´Private Sector Led Economic Growth´, a concept paper on industrial growth and economic expansion, proposing new measures for both the government and the private sector players to act upon.

"The draft will then be widely discussed and finalized so that it could serve as guidelines for FNCCI leadership as well as the government,” reads a statement. 

The AGM has President of Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) B Muthuraman as keynote speaker. He will share India´s experience of economic transformation and roles played by the private sector in steering the country to high-growth trajectory.

The meeting will also discuss at length problems like energy crisis, labor law rigidity, poor access to finances, and low-level of entrepreneurial development faced by the entrepreneurs.

Source: Republica